We have few new faculty members joining us this year, and it's only right to give them a Westminster Welcome! Over the following weeks, a new faculty member will be spotlighted. Meet Dr. René Píco II, Associate Professor of Science and English Language Learner methods for the School of Education.

In 2014, officials announced that Westminster College was set to receive a $1.027 million grant through the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program of the National Science Foundation, a program aimed to increase qualifications of secondary educators in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (or IQ:STEM). Since its inception at Westminster, seven scholars have been accepted into the program; four of which have graduated and are in their first years of teaching.

Junior early childhood/special education majors taking “Testing and Assessment,” taught by Dr. Alison DuBois, assistant professor of early childhood education, special education and counseling at Westminster College, held classes on-site at George Washington Intermediate School in New Castle, PA this semester. In “Testing and Assessment,” the students learned the theory behind creating reliable and valid assessments and created assessments to use with young students to help increase reading and comprehension skills.

Westminster College alumna Abby Buckholt ’14 organized a formal dress collection for 7th and 8th grade girls at Selma Middle School in Selma, North Carolina. Abby is currently a special education teacher at Selma Middle School.

Westminster College student athletes and the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) collaborated with the Lawrence County Special Olympics to host the Lawrence County Basketball Special Olympics. The Olympic games took place in the Memorial Fieldhouse on Saturday, March 25, 2017. Olympians from Crawford, Beaver, Washington, Westmoreland, Allegheny and Butler counties competed this year.

Well over 400 people gathered at Westminster College’s Professional Networking Symposium on Saturday, April 1, 2017. Alumni and friends of the college, across disciplines, were invited to share professional advice and network with current Westminster students. In panels led by alumni and friends of the college, members of the Westminster community engaged in various breakout sessions and other networking opportunities.

Senior early childhood education majors Melissa Egan and Denver Baker, along with Dr. Sararose Lynch, recently traveled to Samaná, Dominican Republic as part of the Steel City Mission Group. Egan, Baker and Dr. Lynch teamed up with a group of students and Dr. Jeremy Lynch, associate professor of special education, from Slippery Rock University (SRU) to teach math and science to school aged children and families. The mission group visited 6 schools: Robales, Honduras, Arroyo Seco, El Valle, Maria Louisa and Los Coronas.

More than 15 Westminster College early childhood/special education majors participated in a "Math Night" at Union Elementary School in New Castle during the spring Semester. The night included a carnival theme coordinated by pre-service teachers (Westminster students in Early Childhood Practicum), student-teachers at Union Elementary and Dani Brown 12’, a Westminster alumna with a BA in Early Childhood Education. Brown teaches 5th grade at Union Elementary School.